SACRAMENTO, Calif. — A team low round for UC Davis women's golf in the third and final round of The Causeway Invitational fueled a second-place finish at Del Paso Country Club Tuesday afternoon.
DAY TWO
Finishing the event strong, the Aggies surged up one spot to take silver at their lone home event of the season. UC Davis was the lone program among the 12 competing teams that finished today's round better than double digits over par. UC Davis fired a 6-over while the next closest team, Sacramento State who finished first, was 11-over today. Trailing the leader by 10 strokes going into today's round, UC Davis put the pressure on the Hornets, just being narrowly edged out by five strokes, cutting their deficit by half over the final 18 holes.
Skyler May was the strongest Aggie, shooting a 2-under 70 to move up 15 spots and grab UC Davis' lone top-10 finish among the individual leaderboard. May started her day off with a birdie and would go on to collect five throughout the day. She started her day with 10 holes of par or better golf and finished her impressive round with a birdie on hole one, the 490 yard par five.
Every Aggie in the lineup finished within the top-25, very reminiscent of UC Davis' top-placed finish at the Coeur d'Alene Resort Collegiate Invitational. Three of the Aggies placed in the top-20.
Among this group of top-20 finishers for the Aggies was
Vani Karimanal who placed tied for 11th, and
Lauren Calderon who finished tied for 14th.
Karimanal rose up from 30th place after the first round and used steady play today to maintain her position. She carded one birdie today, and had 12 pars to maintain her steady control on the very difficult Del Paso Country Club course.
Calderon was the day one top finisher and while she was unable to maintain her first place ranking, she nonetheless had a standout overall peformance at The Causeway Invitational. Calderon has been one of the most consistent Aggies all season and adds to another top-15 finish to her resume that includes multiple top-10 finishes.
Abby Leighton and Katleyn Parr both finished tied for 23rd and were effective in the third and final round. Leighton fired five birdies whereas Parr had 15 pars, living up to her last name and showing incredible steadiness and poise for a true freshman.
Marina Mata and
Keira Wang individually placed 64th and 67th respectively.
The Aggies will continue building upon their success at their next tournament, as UC Davis continues the spring on March 11, as the Aggies will compete in the Silicon Valley Invitational at Green Hills Country Club.
DAY ONE
Lauren Calderon shot even par throughout two rounds during The Causeway Invitational and sits tied for first place among the leaderboard after 36 holes. Calderon's effort led the Aggies during day one at Del Paso Country Club. Her 2-under round of 70 was tied for the lowest individual score on the course today and is a big reason for UC Davis' third place ranking after day one.
UC Davis as a team is 13-over and lead fourth place Fresno State by two strokes. Co-host Sacramento State leads second-placed Cal Poly by two strokes and sit at 3-over after the first two rounds.
Calderon's back nine during her first round today was spectacular, carding four birdies along with five pars, finishing her first 18 holes in flawless fashion. This momentum would carry over to her second round where she would go on to birdie her first hole during round two before finishing her final 18 holes today at 2-over.
Calderon was supported today by
Vani Karimanal who finished just outside the top-10 and is tied for 11th place after a 2-over effort. After a 3-over round one, Karimanal went 1-under during round two and surged up the leaderboards 19 spots.
Skyler May used strong showings on par 4s today fuel her top-25 ranking today, as the junior from Stockton recored four out of five of her birdies on par 4s, slotting her as the best scoring Aggie on such holes.
Katelyn Parr and
Abby Leighton rounded out the lineup for UC Davis, with Parr tied for 35th, and Leighton tied for 45th. The pair combined to go for eight birdies throughout the day.
Individually,
Keira Wang is tied for 62nd after going for two birdies over the first two rounds while
Marina Mata is in 66th.
Day two at The Causeway Invitational will conclude with the third and final round set for a shotgun start at 8:30 a.m. (PT) in Sacramento.
